Ryan and Katie's Awesome Blog

This makes me melt.

2011-09-16T08:53:00.001-07:00

This poor little guy was abandoned by his mother and seal family because of his rare coloring. Luckily, some wildlife experts in Russia have taken him in.

How could you not just want to squeeze this little guy?!?!?! I wish I could bring him home.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2037734/The-lonely-seal-wanted-Pup-abandoned-having-rare-brown-fur.html

My car was featured in an article!

2011-09-15T08:38:00.001-07:00

http://www.juststance.com/exclusive/not-quite-temporary/

I did a photoshoot back in July and the article that was written about my car was just posted!!

I'm super excited.
It's really a great feeling knowing other people appreciate the work and passion that goes into projects like this.

Simple.

2011-09-14T12:17:00.000-07:00

Elephants make me happy. :)

Hiatus....

2011-09-13T10:45:00.000-07:00

A gap or interruption in space, time, or continuity; a break.

Wow. It's been a long time. 259 days to be exact...

I lost the drive to continue this blog, then it became so long since I posted, it had become harder to post.
Maybe it's time to start back up. Just soo darn much to catch up on. Lots of changes and accomplishments.

Since my last post I have in no real order:

Started a huge project on my car with Ryan's help, finished it and it's amazing.

I turned 26 and entered my late 20's. Had a great birthday.

Celebrated 2 married years with Ryan.

Celebrated our doggie's 3rd birthday.

Won awards at 2 car shows. Yeeee! :D

Attended 6 car shows.

Made some wonderful new friends.

Have decided to grow my hair back out.

Took the Motorcyle Safety course with one of my best friends.

Got my motorcycle endorsement.

Saw 2 of my FAVE bands live.

Visited my mom in Montana.

Got my concealed pistol permit.

Bought my first handgun.

A friend visited from CO twice that I hadn't seen in a long time.

Went horseback riding.

Went crabbing.

Lounged on a mini island.

Got some sun.

Celebrated friends birthdays.

And one of my favorite things of all: I bought my own motorcycle!!

So there you have it, the last 259 days in a nutshell.

Now for some random pictures...

First time on my bike. 2006 SV650s.

Ryan and me at Waterwerks.

West Coast Subaru Show 13.

Ryan and me at my friend's b-day celebration.

Photo taken of Rumble Wagon for a feature.

Laura, Kelsey and me at Cosmic Bowling.

Kelsey and me enjoying some of the last sun of the summer up on Whidbey.

I won Best Street at WCSS! It was an amazing accomplishment.

Ryan and I at the Seahawks pre season game, Hawks won too!

Island Shop Warming Party with the ladies.

Rumble and his gf Trina at PNW StanceWorks meet.

Denis, Laura, Ryan and me at StanceWars July 3rd.

Rumble photo shoot.

More Rumble.

Crusing home after winning Best Subaru 5 Door/Wagon at NOS Forum Fest.

Me at Stance Wars.

Rumble at Big NW Subaru Meet.

My new (to me) bike Kaito!

Ugh.

2010-12-28T07:37:00.000-08:00

That's really just how I've been feeling lately.
I've been sick for about 20 days. I've had a cold that I just can't shake, though this morning I think I'm almost all the way done being sick.
I've been to the gym once in the last 16 days and it's making me depressed and anxious. I also feel that I've lost a lot of the progress I've made.

I think that my crappy health combined with everything else has made me lose interest in blogging temporarily.
I know I'll get back to it soon, but for now I haven't had a lot to say. Or much inspiration for that matter.
Christmas was good at least. I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday.

I'll be back in the swing of things soon.

WINter...

2010-12-04T16:11:00.000-08:00

Oooohhhhh Christmas treeeeeeeee!

Frosty.

Snowy.

Just photos.

2010-11-28T08:47:00.000-08:00

Just as the title says.

Me and Laura at the ladies only Subaru meet, Nov. 21st.

October sun

Mr. Fluffy Face in our yard.

Boo

Out to dinner for our 4 years together anniversary.

It's officially winter here!

2010-11-21T18:23:00.000-08:00

Torkie loves lounging by the heat vent and the faux fireplace Ryan's brother got for us. So cute!

Snow!!! It didn't stick though. We're supposed to get more tonight. :)

Five Question Friday, etc.

2010-11-19T07:14:00.000-08:00

Yay it's Friday!
I'm so ready for some relaxation and time with Ryan, plus I/we have fun plans with friends this weekend.

I'm hoping we're going to put some Christmas lights up this weekend. I want to get a head start on them so I can enjoy them as long as possible. When I came home from the gym last night, Ryan had Christmas music on. It was the cutest thing and made feel so happy. Things like that are why I love him so much.

A quick nod to my husband: He is amazing. Not only does he get up before I leave to help me get my lunch together and start my car, he has even driven it around the neighborhood to warm it up. He is amazing and I am so happy he's mine. I feel lucky.

I've heard we're supposed to get some snow in the next couple days. As of right now, the weather report says Sunday, but it's been changing every day. I hope we get some. I love the snow. Even when it becomes a pain in the butt, I think it's fun because it's something different and maybe because I own AWD vehicles with snow tires to get around easily. Hahaha.

Snowmen are my favorite Christmas/winter "animal" :)

1. What Christmas song do you loathe?
I HATE the "Last Christmas I gave you my heart" song. Ugh. It annoys me so much.

2. Do you and your significant other cuddle at night or sleep on opposite sides of the bed?
A little of both. We usually start close and then end up apart, but the in the mornings end up cuddling again. Sometimes he breaths loud so I have to turn away. I'm a near silent breather most of the time.

3. Have you ever had surgery?
I had stitches on my eyebrow area from cutting it open when I was about 5 or 6 and then had a biopsy for a mole on my leg which also had stitches, but that's all. I've been lucky.

4. When do you typically have your holiday shopping done?
I would LIKE to have it done weeks before Christmas. I have some done now, but some people(cough mom, Ryan cough) don't give me ideas right away so I have to wait till I get some. Plus, on my side of the family, we draw names on thanksgiving to buy a gift for another person, so I can't get that done right away either.

5. If money were not an issue (and you HAD to pick something), what would your ultimate luxury item be?
I'd buy some amazing shoes/boots. I LOVE shoes but I really can't justify them very often. Other options: car stuff-stereo, suspension, other goodies; photography gear.

What I'm loving Wednesday!

2010-11-17T11:58:00.000-08:00

Here's what I'm loving right now:

I'm loving that my first tank of diesel in the Marshmallow averaged 40mpg! How awesome is that?

I'm loving that I've already started my Christmas shopping. I'd say I'm about 1/3 of the way done! :D

I'm loving this photo of Torkie that one of my friends made. It's one of the funniest things I've seen in a while.

I'm loving that I was able to do 35 pull-ups with NO assistance last night. That's a new personal record for me. So exciting.

Seabrook, WA October 2010

2010-11-16T07:00:00.000-08:00

Some of our friends and ourselves have decided to make a traditional yearly trip to the ocean in fall.
We started in 2009 and continued the tradition this year at Seabrook, Wa.
I've talked about what Seabrook is before, so I wont go into a lot of detail. It's a really neat place though.

We arrived on Friday October 8th and of course it was raining. Unfortunately, the weather report called for rain all weekend.
Bummer yes, but not the end of the world. Of course it turned sunny and beautiful on the day we left.
The house we had picked to stay in was wonderful and we were all really happy with our choice.
I didn't get a lot of photos inside because it was so dark the whole time we were there.

We hung out, played games, soaked in the hot tub, painted pottery, attempted to walk on the beach and just enjoyed each others company.

All in all, the trip was a great success and I can't wait till next year!

The master downstairs that we were lucky enough to get.

Living area from the kitchen.

Ryan, Ryan, Kelsey, Maura and Chris checking stuff out in the kitchen.

Front door and stairs to the second level.

Living room.

Front door.

Stair to second level

Kelsey getting ready to paint pottery.

Me painting a bowl.

Ryan and Kelsey

Ryan and me.

Sunny weather the day we leave. This is one of the main streets in town looking towards the ocean.

Across the street from our house.

The street our house was on.

Our adorable little house!

The back yard.

Hot tub.

From the back yard looking out towards the street.

Torkie enjoyed exploring the yard.

He sat right by the car and wouldn't move while we were packing.

Final good bye to the ocean.

Subie on the beach.

Chris and Maura.

Us.

Our little happy family.

Our group minus Ryan and Kelsey because they had to leave early. :(

Torkie had a great time!

And so we start another week.

2010-11-15T12:35:00.000-08:00

Sort of a catch all random post today.

I had a nice and relaxing weekend.
We didn't do a whole lot.
I did a tiny bit of shopping-Christmas decor, presents and lights and also got some things to organize stuff.
I cleaned and organized our bathroom which now looks amazing. It was getting cluttered and cramped on our counters and was really bugging me. No longer. :)
We filled up the Marshmallow for the first time on Friday night and I averaged 39.67mpg! Super happy about that!

When I was at CrossFit on Friday they got some photos of me working out which actually turned out pretty good.
I'm really excited about this because without dragging everyone I know to the gym, this is the best way for me to share/show what it is I do 4 days a week.

Our workout on Friday was:

7 Rounds of:

Row 150m
7 ChestToBar Pull-ups
7 Front Squats
7 HandStandPushUp

Because(believe it or not) I don't sit in front of the mirror and flex for hours on end, I had NO idea my back had gained so much muscle. Kinda cool. :)
In this photo I was mid way through the pull-ups. I was using a thin yellow band to assist me in doing these because I'm still not strong enough to do 49, especially when I have to bring my chest to the bar and not just my chin like normal.

This is a front squat. I used 65lbs for this workout. So I did a total of 49 of these.

And from the front. :) Squats are one thing I tend to do well with. I have a lot stronger legs than I do arms.

This is my version of a Hand Stand Push Up. I'm still not strong enough for a real one. This was REALLY hard for me as it was. Again, did 49 of these.

Now this was "extra credit". I'm learning the different Olympic lifts. It's actually quite fun and nothing like anything I've done before.
In this photo, I'm in an overhead squat. To finish this move, I have to stand up with the bar still overhead. The most weight I did for this "lift" was 53lbs.

This is mid-way through the lift. I basically start on the ground and "snatch" it overhead while in a squat and then stand up.
As uncoordinated as I can be sometimes, this one is going to take me a while to learn.

As you can see, I need practice. I'm only holding 45 lbs in this photo. As I use more weight, if I can't complete a lift, I will drop the bar instead of hold it like I did in the photo.
At least I'm having fun!

Last thing I did Friday night was back squats. I hold the bar like in the photo and squat. Not a lot to it.
On Friday, the most weight I did was 94lbs and I did that 20 times. Which means, I can probably do quite a bit more weight less times.

Just one thing I want to add.
I hear a lot from female friends that lifting weights and training will make you bulky/gross and they aren't interested in it because of that.

That's totally wrong. Weight training is NOTHING like body building.
There have been countless studies done that prove the benefits of weight training for women that show everything from helping bones and boosting metabolism.

I not worried whatsoever that I'll look like a body builder(puke) ever. It's just not possible with my fitness goals and diet.
I would love to go into more detail, but I don't have the time right now.
:)

Last but not least, I was given this award by Jeska over at Living Our Love Song.
Her blog is great and she has a really cute little dog. :)
Thanks for the award!

Now I get to tell you seven things about myself you may not know:

1. When I was young I was very sure I wanted to be a Marine Mammal Biologist.

2. I could eat sushi(cooked and veg) every day. Even for breakfast.

3. I really really like the buttered popcorn jelly bellies. And since no one else does, more for me.

4. I'm stupidly afraid of bees. Way more than any normal person should be.

5. I still have stuffed animals on my bed(Ryan must love me to put up with that).

6. I never in my life thought I would be someone who's into exercising and actually enjoys it.

7. I really like my job and believe in my company. I know I'm very lucky to feel that way.

I'm going to give this award to:
Kelsey @ This Is The Story Of A Girl
Jenny @ So Say I
Ashley @ My Carnival Ride

Whidbey Island Adventure

2010-11-12T16:30:00.000-08:00

In the middle of September we went to our friend Ryan's cabin on Whidbey Island for the night with him and his girl friend/my friend Kelsey.

We had a great time relaxing, playing board games and checking out the beach. It was just a quick little trip, but I know everyone enjoyed themselves.

Waiting for the ferry in Mukilteo. It SHOULD have been a 30 min wait, but it turned into a 2 hour wait because one of the boats was broken. We were not happy and were all hungry because we were planning to BBQ when we got up there. We didn't get to the cabin until 9:00pm.

Wandering around the Mukilteo waterfront while we were waiting for the boat.

Kelsey

My Ryan.

Poking around the beach near the cabin the next day.

Every time we turned over a rock, tons of little crabs would come out and crawl around. It was neat.

Torkie wasn't too sure about the mini crabs everywhere.

This was one of the bigger ones we found.

Super creepy giant jellyfish. It's one of the largest I've ever seen and brightest colored too.

It was dead so we poked it and took some photos.

:)

Sharing is caring

2010-11-11T10:15:00.001-08:00

I ordered a bunch of lotion from Bath & Body Works last week because they have stopped making/carrying my favorite scent and I needed to stock up.

Well I got this wonderful coupon with my order and I wanted to share it with people.
It's never too early to get your Christmas shopping started and 20% off is pretty great.

I hope someone can use it, I know I'm going to! It needs to be used by 11/19 online, fyi.
Go HERE to order online.

What I'm loving Wednesday

2010-11-10T09:07:00.000-08:00

Things that I'm loving today:

Blue skies out my office window. It was super cold when I left for work, 41°, but I am loving this weather!

Christmas time is coming! I admit it's a little early, but I'm really really excited. I can't wait to start decorating. I even started listening to Christmas music on the way to work yesterday. I told Ryan that we're putting up a tree and decorations the day after Thanksgiving, no matter what! :D

I'm really loving getting my butt kicked at CrossFit.
I love that I am getting stronger and feeling better all the time. There are muscles in places I never have had before. It's pretty amazing.

Doing a "skin the cat"(yeah gross name) on the rings.

Kettlebell swing with a 44lb kettlebell.

I did 105 clean & jerks last night with 65lbs. I wasn't sure if I wanted to puke or pass out afterwards. Fortunately I didn't do either.

The week is almost half over. I hope the weather holds for the weekend!

The new member of our (auto) herd.

2010-11-08T10:19:00.000-08:00

So I'm sure everyone is aware how much I love(sarcasm) riding the bus. I've finally had all I can take with crazy people/bums/gross smells/wasted time and no longer am going to ride it.
At least for a while.

So, the most logical thing for me to do was look for a commuting car. Something that gets good gas mileage and was cheap.
I love my Subaru, but I don't want to rack up the miles on it with my 50mile round trip commute every day. Not to mention, all though it gets good mileage for what it is, I'm usually only getting about 25mpg on my drive to work and back.

Enter our new ride.
I originally thought about looking for an older Toyota, but even with a 4 cylinder engine I'd have been lucky to get 30mpg.
VW diesels on the other hand are known to get 40-50mpg. Perfect.
As I started looking for used ones on craigslist, it quickly became apparent that they are very sought after and tend to hold their value. (sigh)

Lucky for me, we found one for a good price up in Lynnwood(only 15 min away) and when we checked it out it seemed like a great little car.

Honestly, I never in my whole life thought I would own a Beetle. Ha. Never say never.

Our new little friend:
A 1998 Volkswagen New Beetle TDI.
White.
136,000 miles(these motors can be good for over 300,000 at least).
Black leather interior.
Tinted windows.
5 Speed.

Ryan purchased some cheap but really nice/brand new wheels on CL to make it look more sporty. I think they look great and to be honest, I'm really starting to love this little car.
It's roomy inside, the backseat isn't too cramped and it's actually fun to drive.

And his name is Marshmellow! :D

p.s. I kinda want to start listening to Christmas music already... is that weird?? :)

It's 7:45am and still dark.

2010-11-01T07:40:00.000-07:00

What. The. Heck.

I don't usually notice it get light out because my desk faces away from the window, but I was surprised when I turned around and it was black. Ugh. Gross. Plus, it's rainy.
What a start to November.
Speaking of, wow.
October sure flew by.
I think this crappy weather and shorter days have made me unmotivated about my blog. Or maybe the fact that I have a bunch of photos to go through, which will take forever, is making me lazy.
I HAVE had the time to blog, I just haven't wanted to. Maybe a break will have helped and I'll be able to get it going again soon.

So, in other news, here's what's new in my life:

The garage is close to being done. The final wall is being finished today. All that is left is inside stuff, eg: wiring, insulating, sheet rock.

I had been thinking about it for a while, but finally made up my mind, and I am going back to school in January. I registered last week at Lake Washington Technical College. I am going for an Accounting Assistant cert. It's only 7 classes, but I will be working full time during. I'm only planning to take one class a quarter so I don't burn myself out. I'm excited and not excited about it. I already feel like I don't have enough hours in the day, but it will be good for my career and life. On a related note, I kicked butt on the placement test. :D I got 100% in reading and writing and got placed into Math 90(algebra), which is awesome since I've done little to no math since HS 7 years ago.

Work is good. Nothing new really. My boss is very supportive of me going back to school though. They are willing to work around class schedules if in the future I can't get evening classes. That is great for me and I appreciate it a lot. The main reason I am going to school is to make myself more valuable to my company.

We only had 1 Trick or Treater last night. It was sad. Ryan gave her 2 full size candy bars. :)

I went to Bath and Body works on Saturday with Ryan(who by the way, is one of my favorite shopping companions. He's great!) because I had a coupon for a free travel size. I was utterly disappointed to find that they are no longer making my FAVE scent! Two Christmases ago, Ryan's mom gave me a lotion from there called Vanilla Noir. I LOVED IT. I bought more after I used it up and every time I went in they still had it so I thought it was going to stick around. Well the good news is they had it online still! I just ordered 4 bottles so now I wont run out! Yay!

We're getting a home phone for the first time since we've had our house. We've never needed/wanted one, but it's one of those situations where it is going to make our cable and internet cheaper. So weird how that works.

So best for last. I cut my hair!!! :D It's the shortest it's been since I was about 9 years old, just below my chin. I love it though. It's super cute and soooo much easier. Ryan really likes it too. The photos are from Saturday night, my attempt at dressing up for Halloween, hence the darkish makeup and one from my phone right after I got it done. :)

I was also tagged in a Q&A by the wonderful Amber at A Day In The Life Of Amber.

Here are my answers. I'm too lazy to tag anyone back at the moment. :P

1. What is your favorite dessert?
Creme Brulee would be my first thought. I'll stick with that.

2. Ever tried to cook something and failed miserably?
Not miserably, but I have failed. It helps me learn though!

3. Is there a dish you haven't made yet but really want to?
Hmm.... Not really. Making bread for the first time from scratch was a huge deal for me though. I was really excited about it.

4. What is your favorite food?
Oh geeze. I love tortellini. I love sushi. I'd say sushi is the front runner currently. I never get sick of it.

5. What is your least favorite food?
Fried junk or anything with horse radish... Bleh.

6. Do you have any seasonal meals you like?
Not really. I'm a total weirdo and don't really enjoy thanksgiving foods.

7. What's your comfort food?
Mac and cheese with broccoli and turkey hot dogs.

8. Chocolate: milk, dark or white?
I really like dark chocolate stuff. Plus, I can pretend it has some health value which makes me feel better. :)

Montana adventure Labor Day 2010

2010-10-14T20:05:00.000-07:00

Well what do you know. I actually got some photos done.
You might be wondering what the big deal is.
Well let me just say I started at 7:15 and it's now 8:40. I just got done loading all the photos onto blogger. Because my photos are rather large, I can only upload 2-3 at a time.

On Labor Day weekend I went to Montana with Torkie to visit my mom.
It was my first trip this long with just me driving. I felt very confident though.
It ended up only taking me about 11 hours on the way there, with very little stops. Mostly just gas.
I got great gas mileage too. One tank I got 30 mpg, which for a sporty car like mine is really great. I arrived around 6:30pm mountain time.

The day I left I woke up pretty early. My moms outdoor thermometer read 36º. Brrrrr! My doors were almost frozen shut!
I made it home in 9 hours! I don't really understand how, but I did. It was amazing.

Photos from the weekend:

Our first day consisted of heading out to Virginia City to poke around. It's an old town with a lot of historic buildings.

Some famous road agents were hung and buried above Virginia City on what is known as boot hill.

It's a little hard to see, but this is miniature and says "rodent agents". Hahaha.

Grave markers of the road agents

On Monday we went to Yellowstone National park. I was happy to get a chance to go there again. I've been there more times than I can count, but it never gets old.

Torkie got to come along. He had a nice time even if it was a bit chilly.

Up at the Mt. Washburn overlook.

The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone(yes it's really called that). So awesome.

Our first animal sighting. Bison meandering along.

Then we came upon a whole herd.

Silly looking baby bison.

One of the geothermal spots.

Lake Yellowstone... which is huge.

Torkie and me at the continental divide. This is an invisible line that naturally determines which ocean any water flows towards.

My mom and Torkie. They love each other.

Amazing sunset in the Paradise Valley on our way home from Yellowstone.

At 5:30 am, I was travelling west on I-90 probably about 45 min from Livingston. The sun was following me home.
This is the most amazing sunrise I've ever seen. I had to pull over on the side of the highway, dig out my camera and take some pictures. I did NOT touch up these two photos.

The sky was on fire.

It's 9:08pm and now I'm finished. :)

Lame.

2010-10-14T07:34:00.000-07:00

That's how I feel for not having posted in such a long time.

Lazy is why. I'm so tired when I get home from work and the gym that all I want to do is sit on the couch and watch a movie with my husband.
I have LOTS of photos to go through from many different things and I just need to hunker down and do it.

I decided yesterday that today will be a doing things day.
I want to:

Go to Target and get some black light bulbs for our entry way
Do laundry
Get rid of some stuff (part of a new plan to try and purge my life of unnecessary objects)
Edit photos and then blog
Change our bed sheets

Maybe a little too much to put on my plate after a long day of work and an hour of beating myself up at the gym. Oh well, I will at least try!

On a quick side note, I was able to do 10 pull-ups unassisted on Tuesday! This is a very big deal for me. I've been stuck at only being able to do 2 for quite a while. I had a mental barrier up that was holding me back. Not anymore! I'm very excited about it.

Lets try this again.

2010-10-01T07:12:00.000-07:00

Well we all know how good of a job I did on the last photo hunt (insert sarcasm).
But nevertheless I'm going to try it again.
I like the subjects a little better this time too.

So here we go!

The subjects:

In Disguise
Crisp
Fall Colors
A Jack O’lantern
a Shot from the Ground
a Landscape
a Fall Tradition
Books
Dining
Child/Children
Faces formed in Nature (anything that looks like a face but isn’t)
Tilt-Shift Photography
B & W with selective coloring
Bokeh
Best Photo taken October 23rd
Something from the Kitchen
Something Vintage
Something Creepy
Something Golden
A Self-Portrait

4 years ago today

2010-09-30T13:59:00.000-07:00

I've honestly been lazy. I have photos from Montana that I am planning on posting at some point in my lifetime. Buuuut I just haven't really had a good chance. I will though.

But really, this post is about today....

4 Years ago today... I met up with a really cute guy that I liked a lot to go to a snowboard video movie premier.

4 Years ago today... I hugged that guy for the first time.

4 Years ago today... I kissed that guy for the first time.

4 Year ago today... I knew that I had found the most amazing guy ever and all I wanted to do was spend every moment with him and we started dating on this day.

On this day, Today... I'm married to the love of my life and get to be with him forever. And tonight we're going to munch some yummy Italian food to celebrate 4 years of being together and happy. It might seem silly to celebrate when we started dating, but I love it. I think of that day as one of the best of my life. When we started dating, there was no one else for either of us. We've been connected at the hip since. I'd almost say it was love at first sight. :)

I can't wait for more adventures, hand in hand, by each others side.

Our first official date, September 30th 2006

Another date, October 2006

First time snowboarding together, November 2006

November 2006

Friday Q & A

2010-09-24T07:50:00.000-07:00

Woohoo! Happy Friday! :D

1. If you could speak with a different accent, what would it be (i.e Australian, Scottish)?
Totally Australian. Who doesn't like an Australian accent?

2. Can you fall asleep anywhere? (i.e floor, couch, deck)
If I'm tired enough, yes. I'm teaching myself to sleep on the bus and I'm getting a lot better at it. It's always a bit painful when I wake up though.

3. Do you use public restrooms? If so, do you sit on the toilet?
Yes and yes, but only with seat covers or TP as a seat cover.

4. If you were stuck in an elevator for 24 hours, what celebrity would you most want to be stuck with?
This is hard. I don't pay any attention to celebrity stuff so I don't really know much about them. Maybe Reese Witherspoon? She seems like a lot of fun.

5. Where did you & your significant other go on your 1st date?
Well the first time we hung out we went off-roading, it wasn't technically a date though. Our real first date was up in the mountains at this big house for a snowboard video premiere party. It was a great first date and we've been inseparable ever since.

The day we met. My truck on the right and his on the left.

Our "official" first date.

Friday fives

1.What's your "comfort food"?
Well I LOVE macaroni and cheese w/ turkey hot dogs and broccoli. Tortellini is my other fave.

2.One thing that's on your mind right now?
Camping tonight and needing to pack. Not till I get off work though.

3.What's the best advice you've ever received?
I really don't know. Nothing stands out as the best ever. I like the advice to choose your battles. That can be a life saver in a relationship of any kind.

4.If you found $10 today, what would you do with it?
Probably put it in my wallet and forget about it. Ha ha....

5.What is your least favorite thing to clean in your house
Dishes! I don't know why I hate them so much, but I do. And they kinda gross me out if there is food left on them. Yuck.

Things that are making me happy today.

2010-09-23T09:34:00.000-07:00

Just a random list of things that are making me happy today.

Has the week just flown by for anyone else? Not complaining at all!

1. On Tuesday I found out that the new owners of the cottage we are renting at Seabrook totally changed the sleeping set up. What was 3 rooms and 3 large beds before, was turned into 2 large beds and 4 twins. Ummmm... Not gonna work. We have 3 couples coming and none of us are going to sleep on separate twin beds.

I called them and told them we had picked that cottage because of the 3 bed/3 room set up specifically and that the new set up was NOT going to work for us.

Well, the lady I spoke with told me that they could switch our rental to a different cottage, at no extra charge. She gave me 2 options. The one I picked is way nicer than the 1st one, still has a hot tub and is $40 a night more! But we get it for the same price!

I'm honestly even more excited now. We lucked out!

The NEW cottage we're staying in.

2. I got 4 cans of banana chips delivered to me yesterday. I swear I could live off those things if I had to. They are AMAZING!

3. I've been trying to eat healthier and try some new stuff. One of these things is coconut juice and coconut chips(plain sliced coconut). Coconut is said to be very healthy.
The juice is delicious and a great way to rehydrate after a workout. I purchased some from Top Foods last week and it wasn't cheap so I only got 2 cans. Well on Monday, I forced Ryan to go to our local natural food store PCC to see if they had coconut ice cream(which they did and yum) and wanted to check their price on coconut juice. Well, I was very pleased to find it was cheaper than the normal grocery store!
I also purchased some coconut chips to try out. They're pretty good, but I discovered they are amazing mixed into yogurt! Yay!

4. Saturday is my amazing husband's birthday. He's turning 26. I got him something he really wanted for his birthday and am excited to give it to him.

5. We're going camping tomorrow with a bunch of friends. One of them has family property up north on the sound. It's a beautiful spot and I'm excited to camp there. We're only staying one night though because of Ryan's birthday.
On a side note, the Lululemon outlet store is on the way home. :D Hopefully I can talk Ryan into stopping there. I really need a couple more pieces of workout apparel now that I'm going so often.

...and then it was Fall.

2010-09-22T07:46:00.000-07:00

I didn't know Fall had officially started today till about 3 min ago when I searched it.
It was cold enough this morning for me to believe it. 49° when I left my house at 5am.

So on Monday I drove in to work so I could get home early, it was a nice treat not riding the bus.
On Monday afternoon there was a large warehouse fire in South Seattle(where I work) at an old Sunny Jim peanut butter plant.
You could see the smoke for miles. As soon as I got on the highway, I discovered that the fire was REALLY big and the smoke was wafting over the highway and holding up traffic.
So of course I had to get some pics with my phone. We were only going about 35mph and I was just holding my phone up and clicking(being semi safe).
It was a bit scary. I rolled up all the windows and turned off the air and made sure it was on recirculate. The smoke was really heavy and actually made my eyes sting. It was super intense driving through it.
Even after I made it past the blazing fire, the smoke still lingered in between the two hills in Seattle. It was gross looking and smelling.

Going north, Seattle skyline on the left side of the photo.

Just about to the fire.

You can just see the big fire hose in the air spraying water above the concrete barrier of the highway.

1. What is your Zodiac sign? Gemini. I think for the most part it's very fitting. I tend to flit from thing to thing and I can also change my mind quickly.Some typical traits we're said to have:
Adaptable and versatile
Communicative and witty
Intellectual and eloquent
Youthful and lively
Nervous and tense
Superficial and inconsistent
Cunning and inquisitive
2. Name 3 things that are always in your purse besides your wallet. Chapstick, phone, keys
3. Which magazines do you look at the most? I enjoy some 4x4 and car, specifically Subaru magazines, but I am more of a book person.
4. Do you pluck or get your eyebrows waxed? Once and a while if I have a stray hair I will pluck it but I don't on a regular basis. When I was in elementary school, another girl accused me of plucking my eyebrows. I was shocked because I never had and it made me self conscious for a while. Now I am thankful for manageable brows.
5. How often do you go grocery shopping?
Not very. We usually only go to the store every few weeks. I want to start going more often though. I want to get more fresh fruits, veggies and meats in my diet. We tend to eat a bit too much processed food, even though it's semi healthy stuff.

I just feel like writing.

2010-09-21T08:09:00.000-07:00

Sitting in an old truck at Bannack Ghost Town, Montana Sept. 2008

No interesting or exciting post today. I just felt like saying something. I'll probably end up rambling. Heh....

Our computer is STILL at the Apple store waiting on a part to get fixed. Supposedly, they are replacing the LCD. Not exactly sure what that entails but they are waiting on the part to get sent to the store before they can do anything.
Ryan and I were hoping they'd just have to replace our computer with a 27". We're still fuming over the 27" i macs coming out 2 weeks after we bought our 24". For the same price. Stupid technology.
So anyways, I can't post any cool photos from the last couple weekends because my computer has been gone since Saturday.
Multiple times Ryan and I have forgotten that it's gone and go to do something on it. It's crazy how much you realize you use something when you can't use it anymore.

Our weekend was good. Whidbey Island was fun even if it didn't work out perfectly. We had to wait for the ferry for 3 hours because one of the boats was broken. Not cool. Especially when you haven't eaten dinner(or lunch for that matter) but can't go buy dinner because you have steaks, potatoes and salad waiting to be made. Also, I ended up getting an allergy attack on Sunday so that put me out for most of the day. It was sad.

Just getting back into the daily routine. Which in case you're curious, kinda sucks.
Get up at the crack of dawn (4:15am), ride the bus, walk, ride another bus, walk some more, work, walk, ride the bus, walk some more, ride another bus and then get home around 5pm. I'm going to CrossFit tonight, yay! After CrossFit, try to have energy to clean/eat/breathe/get anything done and hope to get in bed by 9:30pm, at the latest. Ugh.

Let me just say, I LIVE for the weekends. I feel like I never have enough time during the week. Going to CrossFit has taken up a lot of my spare time, but I wouldn't give it up. I feel so much better so it's truly worth it. BUT... I really wish there were more than 24 hours in a day.

See, I am rambling. (sigh)

Let's hope the computer gets fixed soon. I miss it!

Also:

Happy Friday! 9/17 Edition

2010-09-17T07:41:00.000-07:00

It's the end of the week again. Imagine that!
Nothing much exciting to report this week. I did do CrossFit 4 days this week, so I think that's pretty exciting. :)
Plans for the weekend include:

Taking our I Mac into the Apple store to get looked at. :( It's only a year old and in the last week has developed a couple lines across the screen. I'm not very happy about that.
Cleaning our fish tank.
Going to our friend Ryan's cabin on Whidbey Island Saturday afternoon to camp and hang out with him and his GF Kelsey.
Give Torkie a bath.

1. What is the first nightmare you remember?
Hmm... I can remember an old one where I was walking on train tracks and a train was coming but I couldn't move fast enough to get out of the way. When the train hit the dream ended. Pretty typical nightmare I think.

2. Even if you’re not a sports fan, what’s your favorite sport to play/watch?
I enjoy watching the Seahawks play most of the time and I also enjoy watching hockey live.

3. If you could pull off one piece of trendy fashion, what would you want it to be (jeggings, hats, thigh high boots, etc.)?
I REALLY wish I could stand to wear high heels. I'm a wimp though. I don't enjoy being in extreme pain, which is what happens if I wear anything over 3.25". It's sad because I see soooo many cute shoes. Ryan hates high heels though because he thinks they're ridiculous and bad for your body, which really, they are.
I also really love all the cute boots out for fall. I can't wear most of them because of the size of my calves though. It makes me sad.

4. Did you make good grades in school?
I did up until HS. I lost interest in school at that time. Oops.

5. What magazines do you subscribe to?
None anymore. I used to get Snowboarder, 4Wheeler and Cosmo. I also had a subscription to a bridal magazine before I got married, can't remember which one though.

A Pet Is For Life

2010-09-17T06:50:00.000-07:00

This is pretty sad but makes a wonderful point. I want to adopt the cartoon doggie now!
If you're thinking about getting a pet, please seriously consider adopting from a shelter or rescue group!

A Pet Is For Life

Photo hunt failure...

2010-09-16T20:43:00.001-07:00

So I totally dropped the ball on the August photo hunt.
I had a hard time finding ideas for all the topics. What I was able to find I wasn't able to get up and posted in time for the deadline.
:(
I decided I might as well post them here. I hope to do better on the next photo hunt which I do plan on participating in.

Something In Season

Feet

Something Masculine

Light

Eco-Friendly

Something Wet

Something Dry

Hello Friday.

2010-09-10T07:16:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday everyone!

This week flew by for me. Which might have had something to do with the fact that it was only 3 days. I love short weeks. I wish I could work 4 10 hour days every week instead of the normal 5 8's.

We don't really have anything going on this weekend. I'm not sad about this though. It will be nice to just relax and spend time with my husband. I'm thinking about baking some yummy bread. We once again have a ton planned for the next couple weekends.

I might be taking some photos for some friends this weekend. The weather is supposed to be nicer tomorrow so hopefully we can make it happen. Excited and nervous to do it because I still don't have a lot of experience with portraits, but I adore them (the family) so I think it will be fun.

Five Question Friday brought to you by My Little Life.

1. Do you feel guilty spending money on yourself?
Not really. I work pretty hard so I feel like I can splurge once and a while. I don't buy a lot of stuff though.

2. How well do you know your neighbors?
Not very. We've lived at our house for 2.5 years and barely met any of them. One of them actually had the nerve to come and yell at me last summer for having multiple cars at our house. I was totally caught off guard and it really upset me. She's on my dislike list now.
Since we started the garage, EVERYONE stops and talks to us now. It's actually really nice. We've met and talked to a lot more people now and everyone has been really nice to us. I think people appreciate that our home improvements make the neighborhood nicer. Also, I think they've realized we're not just rude and irresponsible young people after all.

3. What age are you looking forward to being?
I would like to stay 25 forever. I really don't want to get any older. This is my ideal age that I was looking forward to being.

4. Do you get excited when the mail comes? Why?
Sometimes... Lately, we mostly get junk mail and bills. Not exciting. I love it when I am expecting something good though, then it's exciting. Speaking of, I don't think we've checked the mail in 3 days. Oops.

5. What is your earliest childhood memory?
I have some faint pictures in my head of living on the farm in Carnation. I think I was about 2 then. More clear though, I remember playing with clay in preschool, so about 4 years old.

Changes

2010-09-09T12:14:00.000-07:00

Credit

I've thought a lot about how as one season comes to an end, I always seem to be ready for the next. Maybe that's natures way of alleviating boredom.

I'll miss summer, but I'm starting to crave fall. Colors, warm clothing, spiced cider and of course, Halloween. Then I will start to hope for crisp, cold and blue sky winter mornings and maybe even a little of that white stuff we so rarely see around here. The cold will start to get to me and I'll wish for spring and new flowers and leaves. Soon though, I'll dream of warm mornings and warm nights without 5 layers of clothing. As the hot days and endless sun become tiresome, fall will be back to welcome me to a new season and a fresh start.

I guess I'm in a thoughtful mood today.

The last couple months and days even, I've felt such animosity towards children that I sometimes fear I'll never want my own. I feel like I am constantly having things happen around me that reinforce my distaste for children. Unruly and rude children in restaurants. Screaming, whining kids in stores. It's unpleasant to say the least.

Yet, looking at one of the blogs I frequent, I start to get a little tug again. Her photos of her new born baby girl stirred something in me.

Maybe I'm not hopeless. Change is always happening it seems and fresh perspectives should always be welcome.

Back home and tagged!

2010-09-08T08:52:00.000-07:00

Well I made it to Montana and back with NO problems.
The drive there was about 11 hours. Had a great couple days with my mom.
The drive back was some how only 9 hours. I made great time.
More on this later though...

Little fuzzy guy napping on the way to Montana. Which he did pretty much the whole time.

Ashley over at My Carnival Ride tagged me in a Q & A game. I feel honored! :)

Here are the questions she picked:

1. If you could pick any decade to have grown up in, which would you choose?
Hmm.... That's a hard one for me. I love the simplicity of the older decades, but they had their problems. I would love to experience the 30's and 40's and the pioneer times in the wild west. :)

2. When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I was very interested in being a marine mammal biologist. I loved whales and dolphins.

3. If you had to change your name, what would you change it to?
Yikes. I don't know. I don't like a lot of girl names very much. I'll keep mine for now. :)

4. If you could go on a road trip with anyone, dead or alive, who would you choose and where would you go?
My husband. He is the best road trip companion. And I would have us take a month and go across the whole USA. We did a lot of the western part on our honeymoon but I want to see more. :)

5. What is the best concert you’ve ever been to?
Tool. I've seen them 3 times and every time was amazing. U2 also puts on a really great show.

6. What is the weirdest thing you’ve ever eaten?
When I was a little kid I ate an ant. Other than that, some people think sushi is weird.

7. What is your all-time favorite song and why?
I can't pick just one. I have a lot of favorite songs. They change every few years too. A special one is Don't Cry Out by Shiny Toy Guns. It reminds me A LOT of when Ryan and I met/started dating. It has really special memories attached to it.

8. What is your biggest phobia?
Well I HATE bees. I will run from them like a crazy person. Or spiders. Ewwww. Fleas also really creep me out.

I'm so happy this is such a short week for me.
Fall has officially come to the Northwest. I'm a little sad but excited for the changes. I can't wait for Halloween and all the fall colors.

Excited!!!

2010-09-01T09:53:00.001-07:00

I just made our reservations to stay here October 8th, 9th and 10th!

Isn't this place just too cute?

I'm so EXCITED!!!!!

We're going with 4 other friends and staying for two nights. The last photo is one I took from the beach at Seabrook last year when we first checked the place out. It's so pretty and because it's away from Ocean Shores, it's more private.

We did end up renting the house/cabin I mentioned here. Torkie even gets to come too!

October is looking pretty good now. Bring it on Fall!

Walking in the rain.

2010-08-31T08:00:00.000-07:00

It started raining this morning on my way to work.
As my friend and I made our way further south into Seattle, the rain got more rainy. As we were walking from our second bus into work I had to duck my head to keep the rain from going into my eyes.
Now it's raining pretty hard so I am thankful we made it inside before it really started coming down.
I've been pretty lucky this summer. I haven't had too many rainy days when going to and from work.
I guess this means summer is really coming to and end. I am both distressed and eager about the changing of the seasons.

This Friday I will be leaving really early (5am or so) to head to Montana to see my mom. It's just going to be Torkie and me on this adventure.
Ryan has a lot to do and felt like he shouldn't take the time away. I, on the other hand, feel strongly that I should go. It's going to be my last opportunity to see my mom until Thanksgiving or even Christmas.
I get Monday off for labor day so I only have to take 2 days off work. I will be coming home early Tuesday morning.
It's a 12 hour drive there. I've done it enough times that I know the drive like the back of my hand. I've even driven the whole thing myself before, but not by myself. I feel confident though. I'm leaving at 5am specifically so I will only be driving during the daylight hours which is safest. Plus, I'll have my little fuzzy guy with me so I wont really be alone. I also got myself set up with AAA in case there are any problems. Ryan is more concerned with me driving out there than I am, but it's to be expected. He loves me, that's all. :)
I'm excited to see my mom and for her to meet Torkie. I think it will be really fun to have some time together to do whatever we want.

Speaking of Torkie, I can hardly write a blog post without a cute photo of him. Ryan sent me this yesterday morning. Apparently Torkie was looking extra cute because he wanted Ryan to take him potty. :)

And the best part for last...

On Saturday Torkie and I met up with my friend Laura and her little 4 month old Boston Terrier, Dexter and went to the Marymoor dog park.
I am thrilled to report that Torkie was the perfect little pup and very well behaved. He mostly trotted along right by my side and didn't growl or bark at any other dogs.
On the other hand, he didn't really play with anyone or check stuff out too much. Which is ok, but I wanted him to enjoy himself.
Little Dexter wanted to play with Torkie SO bad but Torkie was mostly ignoring him.

We were nearing the end of our play date and just walking around the fields at the park. Torkie decided to potty for the 10th time(where he had it all stored, I have no clue) and when he was done he did his little "burning off" or kick his paws back on the grass thing. After that, he seemed to be filled with some crazy energy and took off! He finally got a chance to let it all out and he took advantage of it!
Poor little Dexter was trying SO hard to keep up with him, but Torkie is really really fast. I think in a couple more months though, Dexter will keep up more.
It was SO cute to see Torkie running like he was being chased by demons or something. I was also so happy that he finally got to have some fun. He would almost let Dexter catch him and then would take off again.
Unfortunately, I forgot my camera.... BUT Laura had her iphone and was able to get some video of Torkie going crazy! It's one of the cutest things I've ever seen and I've posted it below.

Happy Tuesday everyone! I can't wait for the week to get over and to hit the road!

Hoo are you? Last day of August edition!

2010-08-31T07:00:00.000-07:00

Play along at:

1. What is your least favorite thing to clean in your house?

Hmmm..... I hate hand washing dishes. If I can avoid doing this or talk my wonderful husband into doing it I will. I'd rather clean the bath tub than do dishes.

2. What color of shirts do you wear the most?

It's not intentional, but I wear a lot of pink. I think it's a nice color on me so I tend to gravitate to it a lot lately.

3. Do you have long hair or short hair?

I have medium hair. I used to have REALLY long hair but taking care of it got really tiresome. Not only that, I have fine hair so when it's really long it gets weighted down easily and looks kinda crappy in my opinion.

4. What time do you usually eat dinner?

Ideally, we try to eat around 6:30. I got to bed at 9:30 so eating late messes with me.

5. What is your favorite dessert?

Creme Brulée. I LOVE that stuff, whenever I get it I usually end up getting most of it because Ryan thinks it's too rich. He he he, lucky me!

Ok, this is getting ridiculous.

2010-08-27T07:45:00.000-07:00

I've been so worked up about my 100th post that I haven't posted.
I didn't want it to be boring, but then it turned into me not posting anything for 2 weeks.

Really who cares about the 100th post? Not that big of a deal. Maybe I'll do something special for my 200th post. Ha!

Anyways, lots to talk about.

Our shop is semi close to being done. It's all sided, windowed and it and our whole house got a new paint job. It looks so much better. I can honestly say we have one of the best if not THE best looking home in our neighborhood now. It's pretty awesome.

We went to West Coast Subaru Show last weekend in Cashmere, WA. It was a blast!
We had a group of about 25 people camping with us; the weather was great, met some cool people, stared at some amazing cars and just had a great time. Every year when I go to this it renews my love for my car and the car scene in general. I already am counting down the days till next year.
Torkie had to be boarded for the first time. :( We had him stay at the Pets Hotel at Petsmart. I'm pretty happy with everything regarding his stay. Apparently at some point during his stay, he figured out how to open his kennel and he went for a stroll. When one of the workers saw him, he ran back to his kennel and pretended he hadn't done anything. He's such a smart little boy.

Photos of Subarus:

Setting up our camp. We needed to save spots for 13 more tents.

Our friend Michael was really excited about this sticker.

He had to put it on his car immediately.

Me! And yes, I'm quite blond now.

Sunset Friday night at the campground. It was spectacular. I think the wild fires burning over the hill had something to do with the vivid colors. The Rumble Wagon looks so shiny!

Show time. All of the cars in our group lined up together.

Spectators getting ready to watch people tear it up in the mud pit.

Our camp spot from a hill over looking the whole camp ground. We were one of the largest groups there.

Speaking of Torkie, we've noticed when it's a little chilly out or if he’s wet he gets cold really easily. We decided to pick him up a little sweater last night to see if that would help.
Well it was quickly obvious he does NOT like to wear clothing. As soon as we put the sweater on him he turned into a statue. He literally did not move for 5 min. He just stood in the kitchen looking pathetic. We even tried to get him to move by offering him a treat. No luck. Poor little guy.
I am hoping that if we just get him used to wearing a sweater and leave it on him that he will eventually move and get used to it.

Photos of said sweater and pathetic pup and more pathetic-ness in the form of Torkie getting a bath:

Please help me.

Soggy pup.

I'm really excited to today to be over. This week has gone surprisingly fast though. I'm getting together with my best friend Monique after work for sushi, (window) shopping and just because we haven't hung out in a long time. Some much needed girl time will be great.

Last of all, I'm participating in Friday Fives over at Just Me and My Life.

1.Something you are OCD about:
I'm randomly OCD about little things like messes and dishes, but lately, I've become super OCD about dog hair on our kitchen/dining room floor. For some reason, it really bothers me. It may be because our dog is light colored so his hair stands out like a sore thumb, but I've been sweeping, swiffering and vacuuming almost every day. One reason to be excited for fall and winter is his shedding will slow down.

2. Your favorite quote:
Hmm I have a couple that have really struck my fancy lately.

A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person. - Mignon McLaughlin

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain

“The most exciting movement in nature is not progress, advance, but expansion and contraction, the opening and shutting of an eye, the heart, the mind. We throw our arms wide with a gesture of religion to the universe; we close them around a person. We explore and adventure for a while and then draw in to consolidate our gains.” ~Robert Frost

3.What is the farthest you have been from home?
Maui, Hawaii

4.Do you do a real or fake Christmas tree?
REAL! I love Christmas and going to get a tree.

5.First Blog you ever read?
I think it was Ryan's SIL's. http://craigandwhitney.blogspot.com/

Happy Friday everyone!

Thursday Randoms

2010-08-12T10:40:00.000-07:00

I've had a sort of "blogger's block" this week. I don't feel like I have anything interesting to say and I haven't had the time to take any neat photos. Not to mention, I don't want to post total junk because I'm only 2 posts away from my 100th post(1 after this one). I'd like my 100th post to be more interesting.

So I've just been mentally compiling random things/thoughts this week.

1. This is the highlight of my week. I was able to do my first ever in my whole life pull up yesterday night. 6 months ago the idea of being able to do a pull up wasn't even a possibility and the thought never crossed my mind. I'm so excited about this. I have always had poor upper body strength so this is a huge deal to me. Hopefully I'll be able to do some more tonight. This is one of the many reasons that I love CrossFit and am so obsessed with it.

2. Ryan and his dad are being taken to lunch today by Cadman Concrete Co. Um.... how cool is that? They're a pretty big company/big deal so I'm impressed. I asked Ryan why they're taking them to lunch and Ryan just said it's because his dad and him are awesome. I was kinda hoping for a better explanation than that, but it works. :)

3. A guy I work with suggested the yummiest sounding thing today. French toast made with flavored coffee creamer instead of milk!!! Can you imagine? Southern Butter Pecan french toast... Pumpkin Pie Spice french toast.... Cinnamon Creme french toast... Drooling yet? There are waaaaay to many delicious sounding flavors. I'm totally going to try this. Soon.

4. We picked out a new color for our house and new shop yesterday. Ryan and his dad are hoping to have it painted by this weekend. I'm super excited. I'm not going to say the color so it's more fun when I post pics later. All I know is its going to look way better than before.

5. Last November we went to the ocean with our friends Ryan and Kelsey. It was fun. Because it was fall and really cold, it wasn't crowded and it was fun being in the stormy weather. Anyways, while we were driving around checking stuff out we came upon this little town called Seabrook that had just popped up in recent years. I guess it would be sort of a resort town. Meaning, it was built with the intention for people to rent out their little homes to vacationers. We ate dinner at the little restaurant in town and drove around it a little bit. It was a really neat place.
We decided that maybe we'd make our fall trip to the ocean a yearly tradition and this year stay in one of the cabin/houses. They range in price from $99 a night for a smallish but very cute place to huge mansions that sleep 20 people for $700 a night.
We're really excited and aiming for October 8th, 9th and 10th. We are hoping to have another couple come with us this year to split the costs and more the merrier. The one we're looking to stay in is called Shifting Gears. It sleeps 8 people, has 3 bedrooms and a hot tub too. All of the little cottages, as they call them, are very cute and would be super fun to stay in. I'm hoping I'll have it all reserved in the next couple days.

Last, I will leave you with some photos of places I'd rather be right now. :)

Grand Teton NP, Wyoming.

Moraine Lake in Banff NP, Alberta

Tuesday Snooze Day?

2010-08-10T07:54:00.000-07:00

Ha! Yeah right I wish.
I've had 4 days off from working out since the last time I went. It was a nice and needed rest but I'm ready to get back at it.
Tonight after I go beat myself up at the gym, my friend Emily is treating me to a pedicure(birthday present) which will be so nice and fun. I'm excited.
Our last wedding of the summer is this Friday. Yeah, Friday the 13th. Pretty weird. I don't think I would have picked that. We still need to get them a wedding present too. All of a sudden the date caught up with us.

Oh, also excited about the rumors that Verizon might be getting the iphone next year. I've been holding out for a good phone to upgrade to for a long time. I've had my phone for 3.5 years now!

I'm participating in:

1. What are some of your favorite summer activities?
Camping, which we haven't even done yet this summer. Taking walks. Hiking, which we also haven't done. Swimming, we checked out our community pool a couple weeks ago and it was actually really nice. Road trips.
2. What is your favorite flower?
Anything that smells good or is colorful. My mom always gets me the most beautiful bouquets on my birthday.
3. What is your favorite meal of the day?
Breakfast. I only get a real breakfast on the weekends because I'm in too much of a hurry and it's too early when I get up. Breakfast type foods are soooo good.
4. How much time do you spend on the computer each day?
Too much. I'm on the computer for my job so I'd say at least 8 hours.
5. Do you have any pets?
Yes! We've had tropical fresh water fish for a while now. As of tomorrow, we'll have had Torkie our little fluffy guy for a month. :) We sure love him.

p.s. Sorry if what I posted yesterday made anyone mad. But I have a right to how I feel and my feelings are valid.

How do I say this...

2010-08-09T11:36:00.000-07:00

...without coming off as insulting and inhuman?

Maybe this is an "over share" but I need to get it off my chest. This is my place to write and right now, this is what's on my mind. Though I've been debating posting this. Oh well.

At this moment in time, I cannot stand children. *gasp!* Sorry.
This has been an issue for a little while now and I'm not completely sure why.
But...
Around the beginning of April, I was feeling rather morose. You see, at that time, I knew about 6 women who were pregnant. With all this pregnancy around me, I started to get the "baby bug" and felt like I wanted to think about having a child. Felt like I needed to get pregnant and make a baby. Pressure much? No, not from any one person, but from life in general and what I was surrounded by.
Unfortunately for Ryan and me, that wasn't an option then or now. We believe in planning for a child and being financially prepared before we let it happen. I refuse to let a child come into a world where we can't comfortably take care of it. It feels irresponsible to me otherwise.
So I started to get bummed out and felt pretty crappy about it.

But at some point in May or something I had an epiphany.

I'm 24 years old! I don't need to have children any time soon. What the heck was I thinking?!?!?!

Ryan, the amazing husband that he is, is totally supportive of me and my feelings on this. He agrees that we don't need to be thinking about having kids anytime soon.

Which I now believe has led me to my current distaste for children.
Maybe a sort of defense mechanism against being upset about not being able to have them?
I don't know.
All I do know is that I feel like I have a kid allergy. They annoy me. Hearing about them annoys me.
No, there is no thing in particular or any child in particular which is bothering me.
Everyone who reads this and is fortunate enough to have been able to have children already, I'm happy for you and deep down I love all your babies and think they're adorable, but *shudder* I just can't deal with them right now.

At some point I'll (hopefully) get over this. But right now I apologize if I don't want to hold your baby or if I don't get excited when so and so takes their first steps. Yes I am happy for you, I just don't want to have anything to do with it.

(sigh)

So does everyone think I'm an awful and evil person now?

Getting to know me.... on Sunday.

2010-08-08T13:07:00.000-07:00

Random photo from April 2009. I stumbled upon it when looking through some others and was shocked by how long my hair was.

1. Do you think mustaches are sexy?
I think they are on my husband. He has a hairy face a lot of the time so I've grown to love it. He's very manly.

2. What's the last concert you've been to?
For my best friends 21st birthday in 2007 we went to Las Vegas. Her brothers god father bought everyone tickets to see Prince at the Rio. It wasn't something I would have done on my own but I really enjoyed the show a lot.

3 What was your favorite 80's sitcom?
I must have been too young because I don't have one.

4. Were you named after anyone?
My grandma's middle name is Kathryn, my aunt's name is Kathryn and my grandma's grandma was the equivalent of Kathryn in Finnish. So it's safe to say yes.

5. When you buy new clothes, do you wash before wearing?
Depends on the item. I know I probably should, but not always.

6. If you didn't blog, what would you do with your spare time?
Read. I read a lot and when I'm done writing this I probably will go and try to finish my book.

7. What is your favorite department store?
Nordstrom! LOVE that place. I can always find tons of cute stuff there.

8. If you were to get Laser Hair Removal..where would you get it?
Arm pits or legs. Both are a pain to shave constantly.

Happy Friday!

2010-08-06T07:43:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone has something fun planned this weekend. My good friend's birthday is tonight, so tomorrow we're going out to dinner and hanging out with a bunch of people. Should be a good time!

My goal this weekend is to also get some of the photos taken for the big August photo challenge. I'm excited about getting out and finding interesting things to shoot. :)

Time for 5 Question Friday!

1. Are you a neat sleeper or a messy sleeper?
I am a pretty neat sleeper most nights. My husband on the other hand ends up with the blankets everywhere and his pillow halfway down the bed.

2. Fill in the blank. I wish I was more ________________.
Even keeled. I sometimes think it's the Gemini in me, but I can be a rollercoaster sometimes.

3. What is something that you wish you had been warned about?
Well I'm sure I was warned about this, but that life just gets harder when you grow up. You spend all this time wanting to be an adult but don't realize it's really hard and that you had it SO easy as a kid.

4. What was the best thing you ever found at a garage sale/flea market?
Well my husband always finds great stuff. He got a whole bunch of materials for our garage for REALLY cheap at a garage sale last month. I on the other hand don't go to them much. But at the same garage sale, I got a really cool Ansel Adams print in a nice frame for $5. :)

5. If you could have any meal brought to you right now, what would it be?
Breakfast!!!!! Yummy rolled oats oatmeal with nuts and dried fruit, Swedish pancakes, turkey bacon, fresh fruit and peppermint hot cocoa. Yum!

Play along at:

Good news!

2010-08-04T07:41:00.000-07:00

My leg isn't going to fall off or anything! Yes, I will admit I was having some hypochondriac type thoughts about my flesh rotting away or something. It happens.
When I went to the doctor yesterday my dent was pretty much gone(of course). I still went anyways to talk to her about it. She checked me out, went over a couple things and basically said that what's going on with me is similar to shin splints but with no pain. Ok, works for me. She said there is nothing to be worried about unless it starts to hurt or something.
Phew!

Also, yesterday I decided to step up my workout regimen. I'm really excited about this.
Like I mentioned a while back I'm really loving CrossFit. I've NEVER in my life been this into exercising. I bumped up my membership to unlimited status with the plan to go at least 3 times, if not 4 times a week. Yay!
Best shape ever... here I come!

Also I'm participating in a Blog Hop today.
Play along at:

The week's half over, well almost. Yay!

Oh sleep, why must you be so elusive...?

2010-08-03T07:43:00.000-07:00

So last night Ryan and I went and rescued a friend of ours who crashed his car. We drove about 1.5 hours to where he was, loaded his car on a trailer and went home. Our friend is ok, which we're very happy about. His car on the other hand is not. He was on a dirt forest service road and had to swerve for a deer. The combo of summer tires, ABS and gravel sent him sideways, into a tree and almost over a cliff. Yay for NOT going over the cliff. He had to call and have the DNR pull him out and once he was out he had to drive his wrecked car about 10 miles down the dirt road to the main road where he actually could get cell phone reception.
I didn't get home till 11:45pm. As I was getting ready for bed, Torkie decided he needed to go outside and go to the bathroom. I was NOT thrilled walking him at midnight. Sigh.
So I'm tired today. I don't do well with tired. I am glad we were able to help him though.

I am also going to the doctor today. For the last week I've noticed a weird dent on my right shin. It doesn't hurt at all and isn't bruised. I know it didn't get there from me hitting it on something and yesterday I made sure that I don't sit a certain way that would cause it to dent. It was a lot more noticeable yesterday and started freaking me out so I made an appointment. It seemed to be better looking by yesterday evening, but I'm still worried. Hopefully the doc will know what's going on or at least tell me it's nothing. It is weird looking though so I hope it goes away. :(

Anyways, I'm playing Top 2 Tuesday today.

The topic is 2 simple pleasures...

1. Crisp winter mornings.

I love when you wake up and it's blue skies and frosty air. Those are my faves.

2. Hugging my husband.

I can't get enough of him. Hugging him just feels so good and right.

Also playing Hoo Are You? from Night Owl Crafting.

1. What is your natural hair color?
Light brown. I haven't had it natural in a while though. I tend to play with my hair color a lot.

2. Which do you prefer, sunrises or sunsets?
Sunsets. When the sun comes up I'm usually in a hurry for work so I don't get to enjoy it.

3. What is the first thing you notice about people?
Their personality. How they come off to people. I try not to make snap judgements, but sometimes you can tell if someone is rude or full of themselves right away. I also notice shoes, I can't help it. It's a weird habit. Lol.

4. Do you prefer talking or texting on your cell phone?
I prefer talking. Texting annoys me. I only do it when I have to.

5. What size of shoes do you wear?
7 to 7.5 in heels 7.5 to 8 in other shoes.

August 2010 Photo Hunt

2010-08-02T08:21:00.000-07:00

So I'm going to participate in a photo hunt for the first time ever this month.
I'm very excited and a little intimidated by this. There are 20 categories that I will be trying to take a photo for. Yikes! I've decided to print out the list and carry it around with me. :)
It will be fun and get me behind the camera a lot more. :) Wish me luck and creativity!

1. A flag that represents you (your town, state, country, team, etc.)
2. Something comfortable
3. Something in season
4. Feet
5. Repetition
6. Culture or ethnicity
7. Contrast
8. An indulgence
9. A macro or closeup
10. Something masculine
11. Something feminine
12. Light
13. Eco-friendly
14. Business
15. An arrow
16. Something wet
17. Something dry
18. Butterflies
19. Heart-Shaped Clouds
20. Strength

The Rules:
Photos should be taken between August 1st and August 31st.

You may use a maximum of two photos from your archives — as long as they were taken within the past year — if you find yourself stuck on the 31st without having a photo for a category or two.

You ARE allowed (and encouraged!) to use Photoshop or other photo-editing software as you’d like (it often adds to the artistic quality of the photo).

It is up to you whether you post your photos on your blog as you go or wait until September 1st to unveil them and make it a surprise.

Put all 20 photos in one single blog post or in a single online gallery by September 4th. Please label each photo file in the following manner: Yourname-category.jpg (ex: kristi-something musical.jpg).

Friday fives....

2010-07-30T07:57:00.000-07:00

Five random questions because it's Friday and I like randomness.

1.If you could be on a show(talk show, game show...) which one would you pick?
Hmmm.... I don't really watch tv. Cash Cab would be cool though. I love trying to answer the questions and I've been correct a lot!

2. What was your first job?
I helped out a sports photographer a couple times. I had to get up REALLY early but it was fun.

3. What's one of your guilty pleasures?
I LOVE to buy books. I can't help it. I enjoy smelling them and looking at them on my shelf. I have so many I need to read, but I do get through them eventually. I really should start going to the library more.

4. Would you ever vacation alone?
Probably not. Ryan and I like to do everything together. We love our "adventures". Or I would love to travel with a girlfriend. That would be fun too.

5. Democrat, Republican, or Independent..or maybe even Green Party (whatever that is)?
I'm something in the middle. Both sides have things I don't agree with.

Play along at:

Happy Friday! I'm SO ready for the weekend. Thankfully, this week has flown by. :)

Metromint water review!

2010-07-29T10:18:00.000-07:00

Last weekend when Ryan and I were driving around and having fun together, we stopped by the grocery store to grab a drink.
QFC had Metromint water on sale for $1.00 so I decided to try it.
I picked the Chocolatemint Water because I love chocolate (of course) and was very pleasantly surprised.

This stuff is very good. There are no artificial flavors, sweeteners and no calories.

At first sip it didn't have a lot of flavor, but the after taste really brought out the chocolatemintyness (new word). Also, the stuff smells amazing. It's almost like York Peppermint Patty flavored water with nothing bad in it. I'm in love. It has no weird tastes, just very pure mint and chocolate.

Anyways, I went to QFC nearer to my house to get some more. They didn't have the Chocolatemint so I picked up a Lemonmint and plain Peppermint. The Peppermint was also very good and I have yet to try the Lemonmint but I'm sure I'll like it.

This stuff is a great, refreshing and guilt free treat. :)

More info and to order online: Metromint.com
Other flavors: Spearmint, Cherrymint and Orangemint

P.S. I'm craving a peppermint patty now.

An update and messing around with the 35mm...

2010-07-28T18:02:00.001-07:00

Just a quick update on the garage.
Ryan set up the in-floor heating tubing last Thursday because they were scheduled to pour the slab last Friday.
The pour went great. They did part of the driveway and the whole inside of the shop.
Framing started on Sunday and they've been working on it for the last few days.
Getting closer!

Also, I got my 35mm f/1.8 in the mail today so the last 5 photos are from my first time using it this afternoon. Just playing, nothing special. :)

In-floor heating

Garage slab

Driveway

Ryan working on the front wall of the garage.

Random :)

This is a good indicator of how things are right now around the Smith household.

My handsome husband working hard... :)

Top 2 Tuesday: Favorite scents & Tuesday Tag-Along

2010-07-27T07:46:00.000-07:00

The topic this week is:

Top 2 Favorite perfumes/colognes/scents

1. Hanae Mori
Love love love this perfume. I've been using it forever. I don't know anyone else who uses it which is kinda cool. It has a spicy vanilla scent. Yum.

2. Escada Sunset Heat (Or any Escada for that matter).
They come out with a new one every year. They're all similar and great but with different hints of fragrance. This one has a very pineapple smell to it. I love it. Tropical and fun.

Play along at The Undomestic Momma.

Play along at Twee Poppets.

Torkie's first time playing ball

2010-07-26T21:17:00.000-07:00

Torkie hasn't shown a lot interest in toys so we were a little disappointed and figured ball throwing was out of the question.
We were SO excited when we discovered yesterday that Torkie is interested in playing with balls.
He loves it and is so cute when he gets really into it.
Here are some photos of our ball session tonight. I'm loving my new lens too. :)

My ball!

Throw it again!

You're not gonna take it are you?

Just try to get it!

Weeeeeeee! I got it!!!

Playing with my new(to me) lens...

2010-07-23T17:52:00.000-07:00

So... funny story.... On Tuesday I posted two things I wanted to buy. Neither of which I was planning to get any time soon.

Well..... I popped on Craigslist on Wednesday for fun and typed in "Nikon". I found the lens I was drooling over.... for SUPER cheap. Like, ridiculously cheap.
So on Wednesday after work Ryan and I met up with the seller out in Seattle to check it out. The lens was in immaculate condition so I purchased it. It's an older model and that seller had bought used 6 years ago, but I don't mind. It's a great lens so I am super excited.
I played around with it a bit and now I'll share some photos... because that's what I do. :)

5 Question Friday and My first blog award... :)

2010-07-23T16:05:00.000-07:00

1. What were your school colors?
Blue and White.... booooring....

2. What's the best compliment you ever received?
Hmmm... My husband like to tell me I'm the coolest chick he's ever met. That makes me pretty happy.

3. Do you buy cheap or expensive toilet paper?
We get nice toilet paper. It's super soft.

4. Have you ever had a surprise party thrown for you? Or have you had one for someone else?

I had a surprise birthday dinner thrown for me this year with a whole bunch of my girl friends. It was amazing.

5. What is one material possession that you "can't live without"?
Oh man, this is going to sound so stupid. I have a couple VERY special stuffed animals and I would be devastated if anything happened to them.

Play along at Five Crooked Halos.

I also got my first award from a fellow blogger. :)

1. Thank and link back to the person who gave you the award.
Thank you Megan! I love your blog too!

2. Share 7 things about yourself.
1. My husband is my best friend and my favorite person.
2. I LOVE animals, especially elephants and humming birds.
3. I love motorsports. Cars, trucks, atvs, motorcycles, off roading...
4. At our wedding, the song we played during the recessional made both of us laugh so hard because it was SO early 90's style and a bit cheesy. All For Love- Bryan Adams, Rod Stewart and Sting. Lol.
5. I was a total punk rocker/skateboarder chick in high school.
6. I love the smell of a new book a lot.
7. When I get my hair done/colored I get sneeze attacks which sometimes turn into allergies. Something about the hair being pulled sets it off. It's really weird.

3. Pass the award along to 9 fellow bloggers that inspire you.
1. Amber @ A Day In the Life Of Amber. I've been reading it since she started, it's great fun.
2. Kelsey @ This Is The Story Of A Girl. She's a good friend and is just getting started on her blog.
3. Tara @ That's Why Her Hair Is So Big. She cracks me up.
4. Stacy @ Stacy Says. She also cracks me up and always has something interesting to share.
5. Kim @ Ooh! Piece of Candy! Great blog and the name makes me giggle every time I see it.
6. Cheap Wife. She always has something interesting to say and she lives near me!
7. Distributary. I love reading her blog, just because!
8. Ree @ The Pioneer Woman. She is amazing. I love her recipes and photo tips.
9. Marianne @ Lucy's Human. I love reading her dog stories.

4. Let them know about the award.

Happy Friday everyone! I think Ryan is dragging me camping/off-roading tonight... First time with Torkie, it should be interesting...

There's an ocean in the sky.

2010-07-23T07:45:00.000-07:00

This was the view from our neighborhood last night around 8:30.
Ryan and I were just hanging out and I was playing with a new lens. He started freaking out and saying "come here!".
Well, luckily I had my camera on me.
I've NEVER seen anything quite like it. At one point we could see 7 waves total.
We drove to a different part of our neighborhood to get a better view. The clouds started to change quickly though.
I'm so glad I witnessed something like this and have pictures to prove I actually saw it!

And just for fun... Play along at That 22 yr Old Housewife.

Update on our garage project!

2010-07-21T08:30:00.000-07:00

Ryan got on my case last night about not posting any updates on our garage project.
I've been avoiding posting anything about it because there were SO many photos to go through and to put in order.
But I gave in and finally got an update together.

This is around June 2nd. After clearing out the dirt and hillside behind our house, Ryan and his dad built the form for the back retaining wall.

Another view of the concrete form.

The morning of June 3rd all ready for concrete.

The pump truck arrived and got all set up.

Concrete truck arrived shortly after.

The form all filled up. After it hardened, all the boards were pulled off.

My sweet husband had the awesome idea of writing in the concrete. This will actually be visible in the shop. I love him and his cute ideas. :)

The posts getting ready for beams to go up. Around June 6th.

The beams getting cut to the correct size.

The trusses arrived.

Lifting the trusses onto the beams.

This was the interesting part. We had a shed which was right in the middle of the future garage. Instead of tearing it down, Ryan decided to pay the truss delivery guy to pick it up and lift it OVER our house and to the other side. It was pretty sketchy.

It would have been a disaster if it had fallen.

Just about into place in our back/side yard.

Ryan and his dad getting the trusses set up.

Ryan working with the excavator to get rid of the large pile of dirt. I was so glad to see that pile gone.

I missed a couple steps and photos. The roof went on shortly after the trusses were put up. They tore most of the existing driveway out. Ryan and his dad cleared some more area and built another concrete form (upper right corner of above photo) and poured that along with the walkway to the front door on July 15th.

This is where we are at currently. I took this photo and the ones below last night. The wood panels have all been pulled off the new retaining wall to the right.

View from the street above.

The retaining wall and another parking spot.

Action shot of Ryan grading the gravel.

Our exciting concrete wall. :)

View from "inside" the garage.

Our new walkway.

And finally, Ryan being silly and riding our in-floor heating tubing that came yesterday.

We still have a long way to go, but it's getting closer to being done. I can't wait. :)

Play along at Take It From Me.

Torkie... I can't help posting pics of him.

2010-07-20T19:46:00.000-07:00

This is the guy who wasn't sure he wanted a dog... :) Yes, Torkie is licking his nose.

The second two pics are from our Monday night Subie meet. Torkie was a good boy and had fun hanging out with everyone.

Top 2 Tuesday- Wishlist...

2010-07-20T09:00:00.000-07:00

Top 2 things I want to purchase. :)

(Or at least 2 I can come up with that I would like.)

Swift WRX Wagon Springs with Koni Inserts

Ok. I'm going to admit this will hold little to no interest to anyone but me. That's alright. I REALLY want these springs in combination with Koni Struts for my car. The whole point of this set up is to make my car handle something similar to a race car. I am planning to wait till my stock struts go out before I purchase these though. I like cars, what can I say.

Nikon AF Zoom-Nikkor 80-200mm f/2.8D ED

Sigh. This is an amazing lens. I definitely DON'T need it any time soon though. Especially at the price tag of $1,099.99. Yikes. But some day I would love to replace my 18-200mm with this and another lens. Some day...... but no time soon. Unless it pops up on craigslist or something ;)

Play along at The Undomestic Momma

Some much needed and wanted camera goodies!

2010-07-19T14:44:00.000-07:00

I finally bit the bullet and ordered some camera gear today. I made my purchase from B&H Photo. I purchased my camera body and my 50mm f/1.8 from them. They have some of the best prices around and are great company if you want to order online.

I really needed a new lens cap and a spare battery.
We lost our lens cap for our 18-200 lens a couple months ago. It flew off when Ryan popped out the window of my moving car at 60mph to take photos of the cars behind us on our Subaru drive. It actually hit one of our friends windshield. Oops.
We've needed a spare battery for a while. If the one that came with the camera runs our while we're doing anything, we're done for. It takes at least an hour to charge properly. This has been an issue multiple times.

I really wanted a remote shutter release, a fish eye adapter and the Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 prime lens.
The remote shutter release will be perfect for low light/long exposure shots. I've been having to use the timer to release the shutter in order to not bump the camera. This remote is wireless and will also be great for taking pictures of Ryan and I together or any time we want to take photos with everyone in them.
The fish eye adapter is just a fun little toy. It was rather inexpensive so I am not expecting too much from it, but I think it will be fun to mess around with.
And finally... the Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 prime lens is something I've had my eye on for a while. Last summer at West Coast Subaru Show a guy we met had the lens and said he loved it. I've read a ton of reviews and think it will be a great addition to what I already use. It will have a lot of the same characteristics as the 50mm 1.8 but without such a close zoom. I'm VERY excited to use it and I think Ryan will enjoy using it more as it's more user friendly.

Super excited!

Monday July 19th Quote of the Day

2010-07-19T07:43:00.000-07:00

“The most exciting movement in nature is not progress, advance,
but expansion and contraction, the opening and shutting of an eye, the heart,
the mind. We throw our arms wide with a gesture of religion to the universe; we
close them around a person. We explore and adventure for a while and then draw
in to consolidate our gains.” ~Robert Frost

We didn't have a whole lot going on this past weekend.
On Friday we helped my Friend Stacey move into her new/first apartment. We only were able to move her couch for her, but it helped. I'm really excited for her. Getting your own place for the first time is a thrill.
Friday night we took the fuzzy little guy for a really long walk. He had a great time sniffing around and we had a great time walking around our neighborhood looking at all the houses. We really enjoy doing this. There is a large variety of homes in our neighborhood. Some are in great shape and you can tell that people really care about taking care of them, but there are some that are in terrible shape as well. We like to think ours is one of the nicer ones, at least we try to keep it that way.
Saturday we went to a small swap meet that was just down the road. Torkie had a good time making friends and having everyone tell him how cute he is. We decided to take him to get his nails filed for the first time at Petsmart and he did surprisingly well. Now when he loves us with his paws, it doesn't hurt so much.
Saturday night we went to one of my old friends wedding. She has always been a little different, so it was no surprise her wedding was as well. It wasn't as over the top as it could have been. She had a nice classic dress but had a camouflage sash. Her bridesmaids had camouflage sashes as well. The groom and groomsmen had camouflage vests and wore wranglers and cowboy boots. It was fun and not the norm, which was great. I got to see people I haven't in a while and the weather was perfect.
Sunday we lounged around and watched a movie, snuggled and gave Torkie his first bath. I'm kicking myself now for not getting pictures of him. He was so cute and pathetic looking while he was all wet. He did good though. You could tell he was resigned to the fact that he was getting washed and there was nothing he could do about it.

I hope everyone has a great week and that it goes by fast!

I rescued a human today...

2010-07-15T08:14:00.001-07:00

I found this on another blog I read. Brought tears to my eyes.
Adopt a shelter pet! Save a life!

I Rescued A Human Today
Author: Janine Allen CPDT

I rescued a human today.

Her eyes met mine as she walked down the corridor peering apprehensively into the kennels. I felt her need instantly and knew I had to help her. I wagged my tail, not too exuberantly, so she wouldn't be afraid.

As she stopped at my kennel I blocked her view from a little accident I had in the back of my cage. I didn't want her to know that I hadn't been walked today. Sometimes the shelter keepers get too busy and I didn't want her to think poorly of them.

As she read my kennel card I hoped that she wouldn't feel sad about my past. I only have the future to look forward to and want to make a difference in someone's life. She got down on her knees and made little kissy sounds at me. I shoved my shoulder and side of my head up against the bars to comfort her.

Gentle fingertips caressed my neck; she was desperate for companionship. A tear fell down her cheek and I raised my paw to assure her that all would be well.

Soon my kennel door opened and her smile was so bright that I instantly jumped into her arms. I would promise to keep her safe. I would promise to always be by her side. I would promise to do everything I could to see that radiant smile and sparkle in her eyes. I was so fortunate that she came down my corridor. So many more are out there who haven't walked the corridors. So many more to be saved. At least I could save one.

I rescued a human today.

Our anniversary cake and more Torkie photos

2010-07-14T20:15:00.000-07:00

So Sunday was our anniversary. We asked the lady who made our cake if she would be able to make us another small one for our anniversary because we didn't save the top. She was happy to.
Well, with all the excitement of getting Torkie and everything we COMPLETELY forgot to go pick up the cake on Sunday.... and Monday.
I felt SO bad. We ended up getting it yesterday and we went to Ryan's parents to share. It was delicious and very cute. Exactly what I wanted. It was mango/lime cake with mango filling.

And now for Torkie photos...

"More photos? You must love me."

He's all legs...

Favorite rawhide chew... nom nom nom...

"I want cake too!"

"Welcome to my domain."

The week is half over...

2010-07-14T08:41:00.000-07:00

Ryan took this photo of Torkie with his phone yesterday. Torkie got to hang with the guys while they were working on the shop yesterday afternoon. He was enjoying the sunshine and just relaxing.

We're taking him for his first vet check up today. I'm sure everything will check out fine. I have to remember to ask her about his grass eating habits and if he's the type of dog that might get cold this winter and needs clothing.

Ryan and his dad are getting ready to pour more concrete tomorrow. Another step closer to the shop being done!

Another blogger thing: Welcome Wednesday.

Basically, this is a way to find interesting new blogs and for other people to find my blog. Sort of like a blog swap I guess you could say. :)

I enjoy doing these. I've found some cool blogs to read lately. :)

The newest member of our family is here!

2010-07-11T21:03:00.000-07:00

Well, the little doggy I applied for is now ours! We have decided to name him Torkie!(I forgot to put that earlier). He is about 2 years old. They aren't sure when his birthday is so we need to pick one.
It all happened pretty fast. The lady who was fostering him called to have the phone interview this morning. Everything about him sounded great. She told me she would call me later to set up a time for us to meet him.
Well, that time was today. It worked out that they were available to bring him to see us.
We hung out with him for about and hour and he was perfect. Exactly what we were looking for in a dog.
We signed the paperwork and now he is home with us.
He's already met a bunch of people and is doing great. I love him so much already!
Here are our first photos of our new furbaby!

Getting comfy.

On the way home. He did great in the car.

1 year ago today...

2010-07-11T12:18:00.000-07:00

1 year ago, Ryan and I were married.
I can't believe how fast it's gone. I've loved every minute of it.
I can't wait for what the future brings and I am so excited I get to spend it with the most perfect guy for me.

4th Of July in Livingston, Montana

2010-07-10T12:48:00.000-07:00

We went to Montana to visit my mom and for a little vacation for the 4th of July weekend this year.
Ryan picked me up from work around noon on Wednesday and we immediately hit the road.
We got to Spokane around 4:3o. One of my favorite clothing companies has a store there that I really wanted to check out. It's the closest one to me. After doing a little shopping, we had mexican food for dinner, filled up with 92 octane for the last time and hit the road again.
We stopped at mile post 16 in Montana to get some fresh cherries to munch on. My mom is located off milepost 333 approximately, so we still had quite a ways to go.
There was a lot of road construction on I-90, which isn't surprising, so we had to slow down a lot. Other than that we made pretty good time.
We reached Livingston and my mom's house at 2am Pacific time, so the drive took us about 14 hours.
Thursday we just poked around town and relaxed. We also had a mini birthday celebration for me with my mom since she doesn't usually get to see me on my birthday anymore. I even got an ice cream cake! Yum!
Friday was the parade and we also went to the arts and crafts fair.
Saturday we went to the craft fair with my mom and attempted to go to Fairy Lake but the stupid road was closed. Saturday night we all went to the rodeo which was cool. They were throwing stuff out to the crowd during intermissions and I actually caught something! A hot pink Livingston Round Up hat. I was very excited.
Sunday Ryan and I went to Natural Bridge and hiked around. When we came back to my mom's we had a delicious dinner and watch the fireworks from her house.
We left at 7:20am Mountain time on Monday morning to come home. Our drive back took us around 12 hours.

This seemed fitting to take a picture of. :)

The view at my mom's house

Cute husband

Me and mom

Friday afternoon, waiting for the parade to start

Smokey the Bear!

Family friend of ours. Seriously.

Donkey with a hat? Too cute.

Cool old snow plow in a field on the way to Fairy Lake

Wild flowers

Indian Paintbrush

I love this photo. I really enjoyed messing around with different types of processing. I'm not sure which I like the best.

The road to Fairy like was closed after 4 miles. I was not happy. If we had more time, I would have walked the rest of the way.

Natural Bridge. During the summer, the water flows underground and you can walk over the river. It spits out about a 1/4 mile down.

There are a lot of fossils and neat rock formations all over the bridge.

This is where the water goes under.

The other side.

We hiked down a VERY steep "path" to get to where the water shoots out. I'd never had the chance to go to the bottom of where the river comes out before and it was well worth it. Getting back up was interesting.

Little Ryan next to the raging river.

Home at last with our new little bear. He's made by the same old man as the bear on the step above him. My mom got him for my birthday and I LOVE him.

So adorable. I wish I could snuggle him, but he's wood. :(

Videos of the river at Natural bridge. The first from above, the second from below.

Our stay at Salish Lodge and Spa

2010-07-09T19:56:00.000-07:00

On Friday June 25th, we went to the Salish Lodge and Spa in Snoqualmie, Washington.
We went there to celebrate our 1 year wedding anniversary, which is actually July 11th, so this was 2 weeks early.
I found us a really good deal on a 1 night stay, 2 mini massages and breakfast for two. The reason we went early is we had to use it by June 30th. But it really wasn't a big deal to either of us.

We arrived at 4:00pm and checked in. Our room was nicer than the last time we stayed, but slightly smaller. This time we were on the river side and that was great aside from the fact that there was construction on the falls.

We both had appointments for 25min massages right away so we unpacked some of our stuff, changed and went over to the spa. Last time we were there we didn't have the opportunity to visit the spa area. There were two nice soaking pools, a dry sauna and steam room. I only went in the soaking pool while I was waiting for Ryan to get done with his massage. He did check out the steam room though and said it was intense. Both of us enjoyed our massages and I really felt like the lasted longer than 25 min.

After our spa time, we went to dinner at a little restaurant in North Bend called Boxley's. I had been searching online for somewhere good to eat dinner Friday night and this place had great reviews, great menu and good prices. It did not disappoint. The food was great, there was live jazz music playing which was fun and the staff were all really nice. We'll definitely go there again even thought it's all the way in North Bend. I loved it. If you're ever in the area, check it out!

We wandered around the old trains in Snoqualmie for a bit after dinner. There were some really neat trains. It was too early to go back to the hotel. When we were done we headed back and Ryan made us a fire in the fireplace. Even though it's summer, it was totally fun and relaxing. We ended up going to sleep by fire light.

Saturday morning we had breakfast in The Dining Room. Ryan had the Country Breakfast which is something like 4 courses of delicious goodness. He had pastries, oatmeal, fresh fruit and finally eggs, bacon and a biscuit. It was too much food for him even with me helping a little bit. I had the French Toast which wasn't quite as amazing as the waffles we had last time, but still very good. All in all, our breakfast was wonderful. Yum.

As a side note, they asked me to fill out a survey after our stay to rate it. I had a couple things I was annoyed about and mentioned them in the survey. I received an email today from someone at the lodge with apologies and it sounds like we are going to get a complimentary breakfast. Wow. I wasn't even mean, but hey, free amazing food? That's awesome.

Entering our room

Yummy cheese plate that was waiting for us! So fun!

Mini bar area, we didn't eat any of the cool stuff. WAY too expensive.

Being Silly

Lounging

Our View and the annoying construction

These little birds, I think they are swallows, were flying around all over outside. Ryan took the screen off the window to get a better photo and they started flying so close to him they almost hit him.

Ryan took a photo from outside. He said he was trying to be like paparazzi.

Wandering the trains in Snoqualmie after dinner.

Giant log that was cut down in the area a long time ago

I'm so happy it's Friday!

2010-07-09T09:21:00.000-07:00

This week went pretty fast.

It's been beautiful out. A bit hot for my tastes but so far I've survived.

I wore a skirt to work for the first time EVER today. I finally did this because my friend Stacey (who I work with) drove in. I have an aversion to wearing a skirt and riding the bus because a lot of creepy people ride the bus as well and I/we don't need any more scary/creepy bus stories.

Just for fun, here is my outfit from today.

The shirt and shoes are exactly what I am wearing, but the skirt is just the closest thing I could find. Mine is very similar except it's medium teal, light teal and grey only. I feel cute today, which is a nice change from feeling frumpy in my work clothes.

Now on to other things.

Here is another blog game/fun thing. 5 Question Friday! The lady who writes the Five Crooked Halos blog comes up with 5 questions to answer every Friday. I found this through another blog I read: A Day in the Life of Amber

1. What is one food you could eat everyday?
I think I can say sushi. I crave it EVERY day. I only eat the type with veggies or cooked fish though. It's my fave and I'd probably get it more if Ryan didn't hate it. :(

2. Are you working in the career you thought you would be when you were 18?
I didn't have a specific career path picked out. I think I'm doing better than I would have imagined though.

3. What is something that you wish you would have done when you were younger and you didn't?
I had a pretty good childhood. I never really lacked anything. Maybe just traveled with my mom more, we just didn't have a lot of money. Oh, and appreciate my body more. What I wouldn't give to be in shape like I was in HS.

4. What color are your kitchen walls?
White-ish(dirty and ugly) and then one wall that is kind of in our dining room is a rich warm brown.

5. Do you remember what your very first favorite song was?
Hmm... When I was pretty small, somewhere around 1st grade to 2nd grade age I loved R.E.M.- Losing My Religion and U2- The Real Thing & Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses.

I hope everyone has a great Friday!
I also hope I get some time to get on my home computer to post up all the photos I've taken the last 3 weeks.

Thursday Five!

2010-07-08T11:20:00.000-07:00

I found this on another blog and decided to participate. This is from http://www.mannland5.com/.
All you have to do is post 5 things that make you:

Happy
Giddy
Joyful
Excited
Appreciative

Then you go back to her blog, and link up!

Ok, here are my 5.

1. Today I submitted an adoption application for a really cute dog. It has put me in such a great mood I can't believe it. Trying not to get my hopes up too much but I am excited anyways.

2. The weather this week is amazing. It's supposed to get to 100º today, which is a bit too hot, but I love the sun and the fact that it's finally nice.

3. We got our newNEW bed last night. Our first new bed wasn't quite right, so we returned it and the new one was delivered yesterday. It seems to be a lot more comfortable.

4. Our new roommate moves in tomorrow. This means money wont be so tight as it's been for the last 2 months.

5. I get a bonus in the next couple days. Most all of it is going to be used for stuff for the shop, but I'm ok with that because the sooner the shop is done the better!

That was fun!
:)

We're back!

2010-07-08T07:25:00.001-07:00

The above photo is totally unrelated to my post, but the title made me think of the movie, so I found the pic and posted it anyway. Cute movie btw.

But, we are back from our trip. I haven't had much of a chance to spend time on the computer and write all the posts I've been meaning to. Now that Ryan is off school for the summer we have a lot of time together to get things done. This also means I don't have much spare time, which is fine, but I don't get many chances to update the blog.

Our trip was fun though. Didn't feel long enough. I was NOT ready to come back to work.

Summer has finally come to Seattle. Yesterday it hit 91° at our house. Our new windows are sure doing their job. For most of the day, they keep it about 10° cooler than outside. Since we don't have AC, this is wonderful. It's supposed to be even hotter today. Yikes. When I got up yesterday it was 57° and this morning when I got up it was 62°. If that's any indication, it's gonna be a warm one!

I'm starting to have dreams about the dogs I've been looking at on Petfinder.com. Last night I dreamt we brought one of them home and I was so happy. I hope everything works out for us to be ready to rescue one in August. Our new roommate moves in on Friday and I have to find out how he feels about dogs. I'm crossing my fingers he likes/doesn't mind them. That's the last real thing standing in our way. I can't wait to adopt our future friend!!!!!

So while writing this, of course I got distracted and decided to go look up the dog I dreamed about last night. He is still on petfinder.com. I feel pretty strongly about him, so I decided to submit an adoption application. There is always a chance that he might already have a home lined up or that the foster parents may not think we're a good fit so I am trying not to get any hopes up. Either way though, I'm excited about this first step. This is the little guy I just applied for:

http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/16725929

Isn't he a great looking little guy? Maybe my dream about him was a sign. ;)

Vacation, Salish lodge, etc.

2010-06-29T10:31:00.000-07:00

I'm still in shock that June is almost over. Here in the Pacific Northwest, it has not felt like June at all.

Tomorrow, Ryan and I are leaving for Montana to see my mom for 5 days. Woo hoo! The town she lives in, Livingston (about 10 hours from here), has the Livingston Round Up every year for the 4th of July. They have a parade, rodeo, craft fair(yes!) and fireworks. It's a pretty big deal for out there. Hopefully we'll have time to go to Yellowstone National Park(always great) and check out other stuff while we're out there.
We're planning to leave Wednesday around noon, pretty much drive through the night and get there Thursday morning. We'll have most of Thursday, all of Friday, Saturday and Sunday to do stuff, then we head back Monday morning. I'd like to stay a little longer, but work has picked up for Ryan and his dad, so he needs to work as much as he can while he can. Such is the construction industry.
I'm so excited for this trip I can hardly stand it. I LOVE road trips. Some people think that driving 10 hours is painful, but to me, it's wonderful. I've always had a love for it. I think my mom instilled it in me as a child. For most of my younger years, we would always drive on our vacations. I didn't get on a plane till I was almost 16. I have so many fond memories of places and adventures when we traveled by car.
Luckily, I married someone who enjoys it as much as I do. We make a good team and we always have a great time. We've road tripped to: Montana 3 times, southern Utah, Lake Tahoe California, Washington Coast and our honeymoon was one BIG 2 week long road trip-4500 miles.
I haven't taken a day off, aside from being sick, since our honeymoon. 349 days. I think I'm due for a vacation, even though it's a small one.

Last Friday Ryan and I stayed at the Salish Lodge(http://www.salishlodge.com/) for our 1 year anniversary. Which is actually 2 weeks early, but I got a great deal on a package;1 night in renovated room, 2 25min massages and 75$ breakfast credit, and it needed to be booked and used by June 30th. I'm going to have a whole post talking about our stay/mini vacation. I'd say it was 97% great though.

The shop/garage is progressing nicely. It passed inspection and has a roof. Now we just need to get some money together for walls, more concrete, garage door etc. I will be doing a progress post soon, I've just been too busy to go through all the photos and put it together.

Which brings me to the last part.
Ryan and I had talked about getting a dog last year. September was the last time we really talked about it. Winter came and school for Ryan, so it was put on the back burner. Now with the shop being built, we have started to talk about it again.
*Before anyone thinks I am being hasty or thoughtless because my Bailey just passed, please understand that I have wanted a dog in our home for a long time. Bailey having passed away has strengthened my resolve. I feel an even stronger need for a dog in my life now that my previous dog friend is gone. This is not a move to replace Bailey, for he can never be replaced.*
We have made it a goal to have our home and yard ready for a doggy friend by August 7th. This involves fencing the area behind our house and planting grass, which would be a play area for Future Dog Friend. Our plan would then be to connect this by door/doggy door to the garage where there would be an area closed off specifically for FDF. Our garage will have in-floor heating and insulation, so this area will be a nice place to have FDF hangout in when we are gone. It will be safe for him and for our belongings and we hope this will prevent FDF from having to be crated when we are away.
On August 7th, there is going to be a large dog adoption event in Tacoma where we hope we will find our FDF. It's called Woofstock for anyone interested. We've talked over all the details of owning a FDF extensively. We are aware of the life long commitment we will be making and are ready for it.
All I know is I am so excited to give a FDF a home and to love it so much it will want to burst with happines. I also know that once we find "The One" Ryan will love it more than he can imagine.

Buddy, loyal companion, Mr. Fuzzy Face.

2010-06-25T07:50:00.000-07:00

I haven't really known what to write.

My mom's and my dog Bailey passed away on Wednesday. It's incredibly sad. Ryan and I are planning to go out to Montana next Wednesday and I was going to say goodbye to him while I was there. His health was getting bad and we knew it was coming, but I really had hoped he would hold out a little longer. He was not a perfect dog but he was an amazing, great and loving dog and was well loved. He was with us for around 11 years.

Bailey Tid Bits:

He loved the Red Hot Chili Peppers song Scar Tissue. Seriously. ANY time that song came on, he would start singing. His head would tilt, his ears would perk and he would make noises and howl. Then, as soon as the song was over and something else came on he would go back to whatever he was doing. Proof below.
I used to grab him, sit on the couch and lay him on my legs on his back and then play with his legs. He was SO patient with what I'm sure was not his favorite activity. When I did this, I called him asparagus legs because that's what they looked like.
He loved his toys but especially his squeaky bugs. They were some of the only toys he would never pull all the stuffing out of.
If you said bug or snake in an excited voice he would look all over for one. He got really excited about them.
When it snowed, he would jump up in the air and bite the snowflakes. It would be a dark and silent night except for his jaws snapping. It was funny.
When we would go running he would start out pulling me and then by the end I would have to pull him.
I used to dye the white patch on his chest pink and purple.
Once when my mom got in a car accident, poor Bailey flew out of the car. Somehow he ended up almost a 1/2 mile away and was about to merge onto 405 before some kind people grabbed him and brought him back. He was ok too, no injuries.
When we first got him, he slept in my room every night and had his own special blanket.
One night when I came home to no one being there except Bailey, he rescued me from a giant wolf spider. It was scary!
He used to go to Doggy Daycare. They had a live video feed you could watch and I would sit and watch him play and have fun while I was working. I also made everyone else watch.
He LOVED Ryan even thought Ryan isn't very much of a dog person. He would follow him around and get excited when he came over.
He was an escape artist in his younger years. He would climb fences and then take off on the Burk Gilman trail. Luckily, he didn't get out too often and once he was older and we lived in Seattle, he only got out once.
He was adopted and returned to the shelter 2 times before we got him. You could almost say that not only did we give him a home, we may have saved his life. I never regretted us having picked him. The other people missed out.
We never really figured out what type of dog he was. He was definitely a Lab mix. I always though he had a little Husky in him.
He would stash toys all over the house. Sometimes you would find one in your bag, in a plant or under the couch.

You will be missed Bailey. Love you.

Montana 2009

Kenmore 2005

Kenmore 2006

Golden Gardens, Seattle 2007

Bailey singing to Scar Tissue 2006

Kooza!

2010-06-21T14:51:00.001-07:00

On Friday, Ryan and I went to see Cirque Du Soleil in Redmond at Marymoor Park.

The show was called Kooza and it was amazing.

I had gone to a Cirque Du Soleil show quite a few years back, but this was way better than I remembered or expected.

The performers were great and very talented. I don't even know what my favorite part would have been. It was all so cool.

There were a couple times it was so intense it was almost too much to watch. The performers have some safety equipment, but it was very obvious it wouldn't have felt good if they had fallen.

If you ever have the opportunity to go to one of these shows I highly recommend it. I hope we are able to go again next year!

Still life? Wonderful life...

2010-06-16T20:39:00.001-07:00

A couple randoms from today.

My little frog prince sitting in the sunlight. Lucky me... I already found my prince.

Flowers from a friend for my birthday. They came from her garden and they are beautiful. They make my house feel so cheerful and happy. I love them. Thanks Mollie!
My friends threw me a surprise early birthday dinner last night. It was awesome and so much fun. I was totally surprised. I felt and feel very loved. I'm still glowing from it.

I'm getting into some of the best shape of my life.

2010-06-15T08:52:00.000-07:00

I've mentioned to a couple people that I have started working out. I'm sharing this because I love it and it has made me happier with myself and feel really great.

In the past, I've had a problem with exercising. To be honest, I hated it. I hated running most of all. Unfortunately, without joining a gym, that's all I really could do. Snowboarding usually keeps me in shape in the winter, but that really isn't enough. I really like hiking, but by summer I'm so out of shape that I don't enjoy it. I had an issue with joining a gym because I felt like I would get bored and not know what to do if I went. Plus, the whole "meat market" aspect of it was unappealing.

Mid April I was introduced to a different form of training/exercising called CrossFit.
It takes parts of gymnastics and strength training and combines it with cardio for a very formidable workout. Work outs are based a lot on natural weight and movements. It incorporates the whole body and really works everything.

Here is a description from www.crossfit.com:

"CrossFit is the principal strength and conditioning program for many police
academies and tactical operations teams, military special operations units,
champion martial artists, and hundreds of other elite and professional athletes
worldwide.

Our program delivers a fitness that is, by design, broad,
general, and inclusive. Our specialty is not specializing. Combat, survival,
many sports, and life reward this kind of fitness and, on average, punish the
specialist.

The CrossFit program is designed for universal scalability
making it the perfect application for any committed individual regardless of
experience. We’ve used our same routines for elderly individuals with heart
disease and cage fighters one month out from televised bouts. We scale load and
intensity; we don’t change programs.

The needs of Olympic athletes and
our grandparents differ by degree not kind. Our terrorist hunters, skiers,
mountain bike riders and housewives have found their best fitness from the same
regimen."

You start with the same warm up every day.
3 Sets of 10 of:

Overhead Squat
Sit-up
Back-extension (almost opposite of a sit-up)
Pull up (assisted in my case till I am a lot stronger)
Dips (also assisted till I am stronger)

After that, there is a specific W.O.D. (Workout of the day). This is usually about 15-20 long. Sometimes it is timed and you do as many reps as possible, sometimes you do a set amount of reps. It kicks your butt, that's for sure. You scale it up or down depending you your level, more weight or less weight and sometimes less reps than what is posted.

Example WOD:

3 rounds for time(as fast as you can):

Run 400m
KBS x21 -16kgs (kettlebell swing)
Pull-ups x12 (jumping pull ups in my case)

Every day is something different and you're almost always sore the next day or even next couple days.

The best part about CrossFit for me is it changes every day which keeps things interesting and it's quick. I'm usually done in around an hour.

After about 2 months of going twice a week I already feel amazing. I don't get winded very easily and I am stronger. I can even do a handstand against the wall, something I could never do before. The small CrossFit gym I go to is just that, small. This makes for a much more intimate and non intimidating workout experience. There are all levels, ages and body types that go to my gym, which I think is great. It's not just a bunch of beefy guys and perfect females. The gym I go to in Woodinville: http://www.agogegym.com/

I just wanted to share this. I'm working towards the best shape I've ever been in and it's awesome. I also hope that maybe someone else with a strong aversion to exercise (like me) might see this and become interested like I did. :)

Simple things excite me.

2010-06-09T11:05:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, there are things in life which are just so amazing you can't believe someone didn't think of it sooner.

I love bagels. They are a frequent addition to my lunch routine. Basically, I eat them 3-4 times a week. Yum. The downside to this is bagels aren't really all that great for you. Sure, I get the whole wheat variety but those suckers still have somewhere around 240 + calories. Which when you add cream cheese(low fat) and turkey, it all adds up.

Well on Monday Ryan are I were doing some grocery shopping and low and behold, what's this on the shelf?
Bagel Thins. (cue heavenly music)
Made by the Thomas brand: http://thomasbagelthins.com/
They are bagels, but half the thickness and half the calories! What a great idea. You still get the bagely taste and texture and they aren't as bad for you.
Usually I only buy things which are on sale, but I HAD to try these. I was so excited.

So wondering what the verdict is on these?

I am in love! They're delicious and you don't feel like you're missing out on any of the bagel goodness. I hope they keep making these because I plan on eating these forever. Or until I get sick of bagels which usually happens every 4-5 months (but then I start eating them again shortly after).

Wedding Season?

2010-06-09T09:23:00.000-07:00

I remember at this time last year I was starting to gear up for one of the most exciting and important moments of my life. Getting all the last details set in stone. About to have a bridal shower. It was a fun time in my life.

After our wedding and during the planning phase I found myself thinking I wanted to go to other people's weddings. I wanted to experience it from the other side.

You see, I've never really been to any weddings. I was a flower girl for my aunt when I was 5, which I barely remember. There were a couple other wedding type things over the years, but nothing that really has stuck with me.

This summer we have three weddings we've been invited to. One this weekend, one in July and one in August. I guess for some people that doesn't seem like a lot. But it is to me.

I'm excited and apprehensive at the same time. Apprehensive because I'm afraid I'll get some wedding jealously. Yes, I am aware of how petty that sounds, but I can't help it. Don't get me wrong, I loved my wedding. But there are a couple things I would have done differently, but money was tight. The three weddings we are going to this summer will be far more elaborate than ours was and sometimes it makes me kind of sad. But when I feel this way, I try to remind myself that ours may not have been super expensive and fancy, we may have taken short cuts, but when it comes down to things Ryan and I have an amazing relationship and marriage. We got married for all the right reasons and are still amazingly happy and in love. And I did have the most perfect dress ever. :)

Plus, with all these weddings coming up, I have the opportunity to wear some cute dresses and shoes and get all fancied up, which is always a treat.

Speaking of, I had my eye on some teal Steve Madden pumps that I saw at Macy's Memorial Day weekend. Well, last weekend I went back and tried them on and fell in love. Amazing and on sale! They are bright(more so than in the photo), fun, cute and so comfortable (2 3/4" heel). They'll get some wear this summer (and after) for sure! They are the Ulltra pump, in case anyone is curious.